Growing up, I LOVED going to zoos. I thought they were the coolest thing ever. But even as my child-self gazed in awe and wonder at the myriad of creatures, I felt a pang of sadness that such beasts were locked up. I rationalized my unease by claiming the animals have a better life in captivity than they do in the wild: they're safe, have medical treatment, and food is handed to them - no need to hunt and face hunger from possible failure. I like to think the animals are taken care of by people who truly care and love them. But even when people really do care and want the best for the animals, sometimes the funds aren't there - and I have seen some cages that had no business holding the animals they did. It's sickening. Yes, you can argue that zoos are an important learning experience for the children of today, but is that what we want to be teaching them? To capture and put living, feeling, thinking creatures in cages for our amusement? It's appalling. Wolves and moose may have seemingly lovely, large enclosures, but these man-made habitats don't even come close to the hundreds of miles they would traverse in the wild. And aquariums - seeing dolphins and Orcas in tiny pools of shallow water just makes my heart constrict. What are these small tanks compared to the vast, diverse ocean? And the people working at these places are often so ignorant - spewing false "facts" to the public that management has told them to keep up public relations; ie. Orcas live for 25-30years in captivity, which is longer than their life in the wild would be. WRONG! Wild Orca bulls can live to be over 60, and cows often reach 100 years! And less than 1% of wild Orca dorsal fins flop over, despite being 6-8 feet tall, whereas in captivity, nearly 100% of bull Orca dorsals are flopped (there's debate over the cause, but it's thought to be a sign of poor health/depression, and diet). And something I never thought about was HOW the animals got to the zoo or aquarium in the first place. Yes, many are born there - but where did their parents or grandparents come from? They were hunted, captured, ripped away from their own families, brought over continents, and thrown in with different animals to be a "family". This is wrong, plain and simple. How could anything like this be right or worth the pain, suffering, and trauma caused to the animals for the "betterment" or "education" of the human race? In no healthy world should this EVER be acceptable. I highly urge you to watch the documentary on killer whales entitled Black Fish. I stumbled across it on Netflix, and it broke my heart and made me burn. They showed one of these hunts. There is no question whales are sentient, thinking, feeling creatures - they worked to trick the hunters in an effort to save their babies, but with advanced technology on the side of their enemy, there was no escape: mindless, merciless slaughter to get to the calves and rip them from their mothers, who wouldn't leave them and were CRYING out. We would never allow this savage hunting and kidnapping of other humans, so why is it forced upon other species just so we can go see the animal do silly tricks and splash us with water at a SeaWorld show?

Butternut squash is such a delicious side-dish, why do I only make it at the holidays? It is so easy to make and such a beautiful, eye-catching color, while its mild but oh-so-mouth-watering flavor complements many a main dish. It's not thick and filling like potatoes, and it's not a vibrant green vegetable, which for some people is like a big ol' STOPDON'TEATMEBLEG! sign (not me - but I've heard there are people who don't like broccoli, lettuce, and even..GASP..Asparagus! ::Swoon::). I make a sweet Butternut Squash mash, but you can easily make it a much more savory dish. Below is a simple recipe for this yummy little gourd.Butternut Squash Mash1 Butternut Squash - I like to find a medium to large oneButter to taste - for a med/lg I usually use 3-4 TBLSBrown sugar to taste1. Peel the Squash and cut into large chunks - scrape out the seeds when you find them.2. Put in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and let cook until tender (easily pierced with a fork) - around 20minutes.3. Pour off water and mash the squash until smooth. Add in butter and brown sugar as desired.4. Transfer seasoned squash from the pot to the serving dish. Serve warm.

Not my picture - I didn't even think to take a picture of the finished product as I was making it to take to a friend's apt for thanksgiving and didn't think about presentation. Just imagine it was as lovely as the squash pictured here :)